As Hastings Sinfonia finished with a triumphant major chord a tutti, conductor Derek Carden put down his baton; but was that triumph or relief showing in his expression? Truthfully it was never certain that each section was going to arrive at the end together – being at times almost half a beat out; so the hapless percussion section had to choose between following the maestro, the brass, the wind or the strings, and seemingly, made different choices. Having chosen a dramatic, percussive Spanish piece, Danzon No.2 by Márquez to end on, the orchestra never quite got into the groove. 

And yet the evening was indeed a triumph. A community celebration of all things Spanish, featuring a superb guitarist, soprano, flamenco dancer and dance troupe and encouraged by the spirited and energetic Hastings Sinfonia. St Mary’s in the Castle is a charming venue; all were entertained and money was raised for the RNLI. The audience’s knowing chuckle in response to Musical Director Polo Piatti’s verbal slip – “The orchestra played as well as they could” – was kind, if telling. In turn, Piatti’s celebration of the audience’s faux pas in applauding between movements of the guitar concerto – citing Mozart’s wish that audiences would clap whenever they felt so moved – showed the same enthusiasm and generosity that he had put into the evening’s choices of short, entertaining pieces, including a couple of delightful pieces of his own. 

Giulio Tampalini dug his long guitarist’s nails into Concierto de Aranjuez by Rodrigo with amazing fluency, flair and panache. The awkward placing meant that conductor and soloist couldn’t see each other, so tempo choices were limited, and the soloist could, perhaps, have been allowed a bit more rubato at times. The string section was under strength, so weren’t always able to achieve that warm vibrant swell of emotion that normally follow the guitarist’s contribution, and I did wonder what this internationally known virtuoso made of what he was hearing during his rest periods. It was a good idea to mike up the guitar – it being notoriously difficult to hear the solo in Rodrigo’s piece – but that meant those of us nearby got an unfortunate double-echo, particularly noticeable in the more percussive sections. Tampalini plays from his soul, his fingers, his facial expression, and it was a delight to learn that he was performing on a Phillip Woodfield guitar, made right here in East Sussex. Mention also needs to be made of the superb cor anglais playing from Gail Taylor in the sonorous slow movement, as well as elsewhere in the programme. Daisy Norton’s beautifully fluid piccolo playing towards the end of the concert and John Rockcliffe’s outing on cowbell needs an honorable mention as well.

Soprano Thomasin Trezise contributed spirited, warm and dramatic pieces, including an aria from Verdi (fun fact – Verdi was eleven when the RNLI was founded in 1842), and, after a nifty costume change, in Habanera from Bizet’s Carmen, she took the overly-familiar aria by the scruff of its neck and made it seem fresh and new, demonstrating her ability to work the audience, including the bashful Polo Piatti! 

Ana Dueñas León managed that flamenco dancer’s ability to be deeply sensual, dramatic, fluid and formidable. Earlier she’d teased us by appearing on stage only to play a piece on castanets. But La Danza del Fuego by Manuel de Falla was the real deal: all finger swirls, foot stamping and lithe body-winding. Diana Freedman’s dance troupe danced with energy and flair beyond their years. 

It’s amazing to me that a town the size of Hastings can support two orchestras and there is definitely space for the Sinfonia to concentrate on the pop-classic end of the repertoire. The Sinfonia, although though short of violinists, doesn’t at all lack the skill of individual players, but would benefit from more rehearsal time to develop into a coherent ensemble. We look forward to their next concert. 

• For more see www.HastingsSinfonia.com

Conductor – Derek Carden     
Artistic Director – Polo Piatti       
Leader – Peter Fields

This exciting programme, mainly from Spain and Latin America, is full of depth and energy, and will include  guest soloists, dance, song and a full orchestra. International Guitarist Giulio Tampalini  will be performing the much loved Concierto de Aranjuez by Rodrigo. Spanish Flamenco dancer and choreographer Ana Leon will be dancing to the Ritual Fire dance by De Falla. Pupils from Diana Freedman’s school of dance will move to local composer Polo Piatti’s Tango Solitaire. Local Soprano Thomasin Trezise will be performing much loved works by Bizet and Verdi.  And there will be much more besides.

Hastings Sinfonia is an exciting orchestra formed by local professional and highly talented amateur musicians. Founded in 2012 by Polo Piatti, they perform music that is popular and easy to listen to, often playing many shorter pieces including old classics, popular works, film music, opera highlights and new melodic works by living composers; concerts are therefore ideal for people new to classical music as well as serious music lovers.  For Fiesta they will be joined by guest professional players bringing power and passion to performances. Fiesta is part of the Hastings Sinfonia’s efforts to support Hastings Lifeboats. 

Giulio Tampalini

Giulio Tampalini has been hailed internationally as one of the most popular and charismatic classical guitarists and as such tours regularly and extensively in his country and abroad.  He has won major prizes, recorded over 25 CDs and played in more than 2000 concerts. As a live performer, Giulio is beyond what one normally sees in a classical guitarist. The guitar is merely a tool for expression of his brilliant personality and musicality.

Philip Woodfield, a member of the Sinfonia, has been making concert guitars for 30 years, selling around the world and to many fine players. In 2008 Giulio Tampalini came to his workshop and bought a guitar.  Giulio’s style is the sort that can maximise the possibilities of instruments in ways Philip had not realised were possible, and so began a lasting friendship and productive partnership which led to Giulio’s first concert in the South of England.

Ana Leon

Ana Duenas Leon (originally from Andalucía) is a Flamenco dance teacher, choreographer and performer. She trained with some of the best teachers in Spain and now runs her own Flamenco dance company in Brighton ‘Amor Flamenco’ with her guitarist brother José. They have performed sell out shows throughout the UK and Spain. 

Thomasin Trezise was born in Brighton and studied singing at the Royal College of Music, graduating with honours in 1992. She has worked successfully in opera, music-theatre and on the concert platform, making her Glyndebourne Festival Opera debut in 2008. She has since appeared in numerous roles at Glyndebourne, including Chocholka in The Cunning Little Vixen and Mrs Herring in Albert Herring. Thomasin has achieved huge success with her entertaining Opera Cabaret, which she performs at public and private events nationwide. 

Following on from their successful performance at the International Composers Festival last year, we are delighted to welcome Diana Freedman’s School of Dance and Performing Arts to this Summer Fiesta concert.  They will be performing Tango Solitaire by Polo Piatti.  It is a little known fact that Argentine Tango has two different styles, the widely known slow and passionate ‘tango’ but also its counterpart, the much faster, very light and cheerful version called ‘milonga’. Tango Solitaire shows both styles within the same piece: a traditional sensuous tango at the beginning and a buoyant milonga later on. It was written as a tribute to all those immigrants who came to Argentina in the 1880s and, by creating tango, made such a huge contribution to the heritage of the country that welcomed them with open arms.

• Saturday, 6th July, 7.30pm at St Mary in the Castle, Hastings. Tickets £13 in advance £15 at the door (under 18’s free when accompanied by a paying adult). Purchase at www.ticketsource.co.uk/hastingssinfonia or Hastings Tourist Information Centre, Hastings

www.hastingssinfonia.com
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Telephone: 07841 448879